Red Bulls score four in rout of Dynamo on the road

For the first time since the Houston Dynamo creation in December 2005, the New York Red Bulls successfully completed a regular season road trip to the Lone Star State.

The poor road form that the Red Bulls have wasn’t on display Sunday afternoon, as they scored three times in the second half to break the match open and defeat the short-handed Dynamo, 4-1, at BBVA Compass Stadium. Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry scored a goal and added an assist, breaking his six game goal duck, the second longest of his MLS career.

Meanwhile the defeat puts the Dynamo’s playoff hopes in trouble, as they continue to sit outside the top five in the Eastern Conference and will need the New England Revolution and Philadelphia Union to drop points in order to get back in the playoff picture. The Dynamo were missing the likes of Brad Davis, Oscar Boniak Garcia, and Jermaine Taylor, who are all on international duty.

Seemingly out of nowhere, Red Bulls midfielder Eric Alexander put the visitors on the scoreboard. In the 14th minute, a one-two passing combination between Johnny Steele and Alexander ended in the Indiana University product scoring on a first-timed curling effort past the out-stretched arm of Dynamo goalkeeper Tally Hall.

The lead wouldn’t last long though, as the Dynamo leveled the match four minutes later. New signing Alex Lopez put rookie Jason Johnson through on goal and after a heavy touch, the Jamaican international finished for his first professional goal.

Both teams had chances to take a lead following the Dynamo equalizer. Red Bulls goalkeeper had to be on his game to deny Dynamo striker Will Bruin in the 28th minute, and two minutes later, Red Bulls forward Bradley Wright-Phillips had a chance on goal that Tally Hall parried away well for a corner kick. Just prior to halftime, Wright-Phillips had a header on goal off a great Kosuke Kimura cross that brought a huge save from Hall to keep the score tied at 1-1.

Whatever Red Bulls head coach Mike Petke said to his team at halftime worked, as the visitors came out with a new-found belief and confidence. Certainly helping the effort was no doubt the go-ahead goal by Thierry Henry two minutes into the second half, taking advantage of a key error by Dynamo midfielder Adam Moffat and easing his way into the box to score.

In the 54th minute, Bruin missed yet another chance in the box, and four minutes later, a delightful Wright-Phillips chip put Red Bulls winger Johnny Steele through on goal, dribbling past Hall before supplying a right-footed finish to put Petke’s squad up, 3-1.

For good measure, following Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear’s ejection, the Red Bulls added their fourth, as winger Lloyd Sam combined with substitute Peguy Luyindula to fire past Hall. The goal was Sam’s second in as many matches.

Didn’t see the game today, but I saw the highlights of Henry’s le casual celebration. I don’t get what his deal is. Half the time when he scores a goal, he puts almost a scowl on his face like he’s dealing with a ravenous horde of angsty five-year-olds. Today he was shaking his head after almost like, “What the heck am I doing here?” As a fan, I like Thierry, he should stop acting like he’s too cool for school.

Here is my theory as to why he didn’t want to celebrate. The way I saw it, he first whiffed on the ball, then Moffat completely misplayed it and that’s why he ended up in such a great position. It was not a good MLS moment.

Back in 2008, the Red Bulls won 3-0 on the road in Houston in the playoffs. I don’t know why this incorrect point about “Red Bulls haven’t won in Houston” gets repeated by game commentators and other media.

They do this every year and wind up in the finals but this year feels different. Their defensive problems seem serious. That was as poor a defensive effort as I’ve seen by any team in a long time. Henry was surrounded by three players on his goal but they all decided to back off at the same time and magically let him through.

The problem this year is the team was not as deep as we thought. Anytime Garcia didn’t play we felt it. Yesterday I saw how bad we needed Ashe. Every team goes through call ups and injuries and the Dynamo did not handle it well.

Our games against the union and NE will determine our fate.

I also think the whole “we go through this every year” thing gave us a false sense of security. The panic button has been pressed time to turn it on.

me too. I like the idea of a post-season tournament. But just separate the competitions. Have a regular season with a winner and then an MLS Cup which is the post season tournament that the top 8 qualify for.

I know E.J. was clamoring for more money, but I think Johnny Steele is the most underpaid player in the league. He and Dax are having a great seasons despite some flack. I think the playoffs this year are really great (with the supporters shield was organized in a way to also make it a little more relevant) with people like Henry, Cahill, and DiVaio headlining in the East, along with a strong SKC team, and Dempsey, Kean, Donovan, and the great Portland and Salt Lake teams.

I think Steeler has been good but not great. He’s pretty well rounded but doesn’t do anything exceptionally, IMO. He’s also benefitted from a ton of Henry service and has missed his fair share of chances. I think he’s generally been pretty good, though.

I am a red bulls fan and I believe we can win it all this year. NYRB has tied or lost to the bad teams but win vs the great ones. There are no bad teams in the playoffs only good ones so red bulls have a good shot at it this year. But I am a die hard red bulls fan so of course there’s some bias.